The guy that let you down, even though you knew deep down he was doping all along...
I wouldn't care as much except for the people he destroyed. LeMond in particular.

Click to expand...

The reality is that very, very few (as a percentage of the population) know who he is, or care about what happened. Heck, I ride road bikes, and I don't care. They're professional racers. They rate right up there with professional sports players in my universe...in other words, somewhere between cockroaches and jackrabbits.

I can appreciate the effort it takes to be competitive without doping. I can appreciate the effort any professional sports player gives to his sport. But it's irrelevant in my world. It's a game. Or it's a race.

EPO is a big thing in horse racing, too. Again, has no effect on me.

Lance didn't let me down. He did what he did, and it has no impact on me whatsoever. The article was more along the lines of "why didn't he get hammered harder?" Well, geeeez, it's not like it's a crime. It's a violation of a rule in an insular sporting commission; I'm not about to pay for a license to race bikes and their rules are ridiculous. These are folks who have let competition and the need to be first overcome their common sense. It's their health...

@Cyclotourist - please do not take this as something directed at you. It's not. It's just that I can't figure out how these guys (in any sport/activity/etc) can be so idolized. When there is big money involved, people will take whatever advantage they think they can get away with. C'est la vie.

The reality is that very, very few (as a percentage of the population) know who he is, or care about what happened. Heck, I ride road bikes, and I don't care. They're professional racers. They rate right up there with professional sports players in my universe...in other words, somewhere between cockroaches and jackrabbits.

I can appreciate the effort it takes to be competitive without doping. I can appreciate the effort any professional sports player gives to his sport. But it's irrelevant in my world. It's a game. Or it's a race.

EPO is a big thing in horse racing, too. Again, has no effect on me.

Lance didn't let me down. He did what he did, and it has no impact on me whatsoever. The article was more along the lines of "why didn't he get hammered harder?" Well, geeeez, it's not like it's a crime. It's a violation of a rule in an insular sporting commission; I'm not about to pay for a license to race bikes and their rules are ridiculous. These are folks who have let competition and the need to be first overcome their common sense. It's their health...

@Cyclotourist - please do not take this as something directed at you. It's not. It's just that I can't figure out how these guys (in any sport/activity/etc) can be so idolized. When there is big money involved, people will take whatever advantage they think they can get away with. C'est la vie.

Click to expand...

Nope, no harm taken or perceived! I totally was into Le Tour, it was fun to watch over the course of July, but I've moved away from that.

The reality is that very, very few (as a percentage of the population) know who he is, or care about what happened. Heck, I ride road bikes, and I don't care. They're professional racers. They rate right up there with professional sports players in my universe...in other words, somewhere between cockroaches and jackrabbits.

I can appreciate the effort it takes to be competitive without doping. I can appreciate the effort any professional sports player gives to his sport. But it's irrelevant in my world. It's a game. Or it's a race.

EPO is a big thing in horse racing, too. Again, has no effect on me.

Lance didn't let me down. He did what he did, and it has no impact on me whatsoever. The article was more along the lines of "why didn't he get hammered harder?" Well, geeeez, it's not like it's a crime. It's a violation of a rule in an insular sporting commission; I'm not about to pay for a license to race bikes and their rules are ridiculous. These are folks who have let competition and the need to be first overcome their common sense. It's their health...

@Cyclotourist - please do not take this as something directed at you. It's not. It's just that I can't figure out how these guys (in any sport/activity/etc) can be so idolized. When there is big money involved, people will take whatever advantage they think they can get away with. C'est la vie.

Click to expand...

I only disagree with a small portion of this. I would wager at least 50% of the US population between the ages of 20 and 60 know who Lance Armstrong is...

I couldn't agree more that the way we pay and idolize athletes is obscene. My 7 yo daughter was handed a freshly-signed baseball from a guy named Justin Upton yesterday. I looked him up. He makes $22.12 million (per year?). My daughter asked how that compared to my salary.

I do know that Justin is not getting any of that salary from me.

Lance is slime. I feel cheated because I was sooooo emotionally invested in the Tours when he was racing. I thought I was watching something amazing, and, if they were all doping equally, perhaps I was.

I feel cheated because I was sooooo emotionally invested in the Tours when he was racing. I thought I was watching something amazing, and, if they were all doping equally, perhaps I was.

Click to expand...

I was a huge tour fanboy since LeMond. Watching lance on His attacks on the major climbs was breathtaking. So exciting watching him crush top contenders like no other. But all those guys he crushed, they all had EPO to. And the most amusing part of the lance saga is that he really did PASS 500 in competition tests. Clean. Yes he cheated huge, but he was not getting caught. Why?

Oh and technically there were crimes commited, transportation of illegal drug across borders etc... small stuff but in the broader sense I think it could be defined as a criminal conspiracy or racketeering and there were big $$$ at stake.

I couldn't agree more that the way we pay and idolize athletes is obscene. My 7 yo daughter was handed a freshly-signed baseball from a guy named Justin Upton yesterday. I looked him up. He makes $22.12 million (per year?). My daughter asked how that compared to my salary.

I do know that Justin is not getting any of that salary from me.

Click to expand...

To play baseball. If ever there were a more asinine circumstance, it would probably still involve baseball.